


Phoenix Project

by Tarlan



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst with a Happy Ending, M/M, Mind Meld, Pon Farr, Telepathic Bond
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-11
Updated: 2015-11-11
Packaged: 2018-04-25 21:27:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4977130
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarlan/pseuds/Tarlan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Crash landing on a hostile world within a graviton sinkhole, and with just Tuvok for company, should have ranked high as one of the worst things to happen in his life.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Phoenix Project

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MissHammer](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissHammer/gifts).



> An AU based on the Season 5 episode **Gravity**.
> 
> Written for: **MissHammer** for [Fandom Growth Exchange 2015](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/FandomGrowthExchange2015)
> 
>  **MissHammer** wanted: _Tom Paris/Tuvok - Getting Together fic would be the most awesome gift! Give me that paired with a dramatic hurt/comfort scenario or plotty suspenseful fic and I'll be on cloud nine! Post Gravity prompt: AU . I'd love a fic where the Vulcan nature of Tuvok factors in the fic somehow, whether they are cultural/racial idiosyncrasies or acts, like having performing a mind meld, but above all marital bonding, pon farr._
> 
> Hopefully I have fulfilled a few of your requests and you enjoy your story!

Although Neelix had never gone this far across the Delta Quadrant, he had traveled far enough to meet others who knew what was ahead of Voyager on her journey home. So when they began to run low on certain medical supplies, Tom was not surprised when Neelix had an idea of where they could go to replenish them. Unfortunately it was not in the same direction Voyager needed to go to pick up supplies of a different kind. Sending an away team on a shuttle seemed the perfect compromise, and though Janeway was reluctant to send both her Doctor and medic, the Doctor reminded her he had a standard back up program. It wouldn't have his personality - or any personality really - but it could handle an emergency. Tom was grateful because he needed to get off the ship for a while and piloting the shuttle as well as assisting the Doctor seemed a godsend.

The only fly in the ointment was Janeway's insistence that either Chakotay or Tuvok accompany them. Tom understood the reason as he was still technically on probation following his demotion and thirty-day's solitary confinement in the ship's brig. As it was, he wasn't sure whom he would have preferred as neither were particularly pleased with him at the moment. Chakotay was obviously disappointed in him - again - though at least not because of what he had done as, for once, Tom had done something completely selfless.

One of the many taunts Tom had suffered over the years had focused on his so-called inability to see beyond personal gain. He had joined the Maquis purely because he was spoiling for a fight after being kicked out of Starfleet rather than because he believed in their cause; something that had rubbed Chakotay the wrong way from the start. Yet seeing the looming ecological disaster on the ocean world of the Moneans had struck a deep chord within him. His first love from childhood had been the sea, and he had planned to join the Federation Naval Patrol before his father intervened and made him apply to Starfleet Academy instead.

Janeway had ordered him not to interfere even though the Prime Directive was not an issue but Tom couldn't simply stand by and see them destroy their oceans. Instead he had assisted a group of Moneans considered to be Eco-terrorists. He snorted softly. Perhaps one day the Moneans might hail him as a savior of their planet as he had at least woken them up to the problem lying ahead of them. In the meantime he had lost status among Voyager's crew and had disappointed the Captain. Even B'Elanna was now keeping her distance from him. She had started a romantic relationship with Lieutenant Garnell after he assisted her with a bio-engineering problem during Tom's solitary confinement. It was a shame as he really thought he and B'Elanna were connecting and could have had something good between them.

He sighed again because he always managed to sabotage his relationships, though usually through stupidity, arrogance, or self-interest rather than selflessness.

"I'm hearing a lot of sighing, Ensign Paris. Is there a problem?" the Doctor asked.

"Yeah. Me." The Doctor hummed, probably checking through his psychotherapy programming, so Tom forestalled him. "Just eager to get going and wondering who's going to be joining us." The sound of footsteps approaching had Tom glancing over his shoulder. "Question answered," he stated softly as Tuvok entered the shuttlecraft.

The journey to Baigan 3 took around six hours. They landed in a grassland area well away from the indigenous pre-warp civilization, where sensors had detected adequate supplies of the plants that could be used to extract the drugs required by the Doctor. Setting up the equipment took less than an hour, and Tom and Tuvok spent the next eight hours picking wildflowers by the basketful while the Doctor reduced the flowers to a tiny amount of a powerful drug. By the time the planet's only sun had set, Tom was exhausted and wishing for the stale air on the ship once more. And a drink at Sandrine's on the holodeck, he added silently.

Tuvok glanced over at him as they heated one of the food packs each.

"We must leave in three point two eight hours if we are to meet Voyager at the rendezvous point. I would suggest you assist the Doctor until then."

Tom nodded, marginally pleased that it had been Tuvok rather than Chakotay because Tuvok's silent disapproval of him was far easier to manage than Chakotay's more vocal disappointment. Chakotay would have punished him by keeping him out gathering flowers by torchlight until the last minute before take-off, but Tuvok would not see the logic in that. As a Vulcan, his superior vision meant he could continue with that work adequately, whereas the Doctor could use Tom to help him finish processing the flowers already collected. They needed to do so before they left the planet as the flowers deteriorated quickly once picked, reducing the potency of the extracted drug, and they would not be able to operate the specialized equipment within the confines of the shuttlecraft.

Three point two eight hours later Tom was piloting the shuttle back through the atmosphere of Baigan 3 and setting the new course to rendezvous with Voyager. The return to Voyager would take three times longer than the initial journey to Baigan as the ship had moved onwards while they picked flowers, but at least he and Tuvok could take turns at the helm.

Tuvok sat cross-legged in the back, using a deep Vulcan meditative technique instead of sleeping but he came out of it exactly three hours into the flight rather than the anticipated six hours.

"I will take the helm while you rest, Ensign."

For once Tom didn't argue because he knew exactly how that would go from previous occasions. Vulcan's didn't require as much sleep as humans, and as they were stronger too, the full day's work would not have exhausted Tuvok. Instead it was a relief to slide out the bed and lie down, and Tom was asleep almost before his head hit the pillow, lulled by the soft vibrations of the engines carrying them home to Voyager.

***

Tom's first inkling that something was wrong came with the soft but strident blare of the alarm. He was awake instantly, sliding into the quickly vacated pilot's seat while Tuvok took over the co-pilot seat and sensor controls. At least Tuvok's logic accepted that Tom was the better pilot.

"I am reading a graviton field."

"Trying to reverse thrusters," Tom shouted, but the field was stronger than their engines, pulling them towards a distortion in spacetime. There was nothing he could do with the small shuttlecraft as they crossed the threshold, feeling the engines twisting out of shape from the gravitation fields pulling them in too many directions at once. The controls were sluggish and he had only seconds to nudge their course towards the only Class M world caught within this gravitational rift. "Brace for impact!"

Tom groaned as he pushed up from where he was sprawled across the controls. He reached up and hissed as he felt the jagged cut on his forehead. Head wounds bled like a bitch so it explained all the very human red blood over the control panel. He gave himself a quick mental pat-down but the inertial dampeners had protected him from the worse of the crash. Climbing out of the seat he looked in dismay at the damage, seeing a massive tear in the side of the shuttle, and he knew it would need a team of engineers and specialized equipment on-board Voyager to repair it. Of Tuvok there was no sign but Tom refused to imagine a worst-case scenario, that Tuvok had been thrown from the shuttle during the crash landing. He suspected his Vulcan physiology had served him better than Tom's frailer human body, and he was outside assessing their situation.

A thump against the outer hull still managed to startle Tom but seconds later Tuvok appeared. His uniform was dusty but he was moving without any physical sign of injury so Tom took that as a plus, but it reminded him that there had been one other crew member with them. Searching among the debris he found the holo-emitter but could tell instantly that it was damaged. As neither he nor Tuvok had any injuries that needed expertise beyond Tom's basic medical skills, he decided to put off the task of trying to fix the holo-emitter to when he didn't have a massive headache. Instead he grabbed the medical kit and ran the scanner over himself before taking out a single mild analgesic, just to be on the safe side.

"Should you be taking medication with a head injury, Ensign?"

"No concussion, amazingly. I have a headache but it's not life threatening. No bleeding in the brain or eyeballs," he added for dramatic effect, but Tuvok merely raised his eyebrows and remained straight-faced.

"Regardless. You must rest while I assess our situation."

"Well, I can already tell you this bird ain't about to fly us out of here, not even if we could figure out a way to counteract the gravitational pull from that graviton sinkhole."

Tuvok took a moment before responding. "I concur. We should focus on repairing the distress beacon and sealing the ship against the elements."

"Or attack." This time Tom thought he saw a little surprise as one eyebrow rose smoothly. "We may not be the only people to crash land here, and as this place doesn't exactly look that hospitable, they may see us as easy pickings."

"That is logical."

"I might be able to raise the shield around the shuttle... if it was not too damaged in the crash."

Tuvok gave a single nod. "I will bring the distress beacon inside but I will seal the shuttle for defense and shelter while you assess the damage to the shield emitter."

Although his head was still pounding it made sense. They could work on the beacon once the more pressing tasks were accomplished - namely, survival.

****

Tom wasn't a gifted engineer like B'Elanna but he had designed and built the Delta Flyer so he knew his way around a toolbox. Repairing the shield took him almost an hour, longer than he would have liked, but the headache hadn't helped. He had needed Tuvok's help to calibrate it but he was glad of that when less than twenty minutes later Tuvok spotted several figures approaching furtively. They had weapons drawn but Tuvok stepped out to greet them as potential allies. Before he could say a single word of greeting they fired on him. Fortunately the force shield deflected the phaser blasts that would have killed Tuvok, and at least now both he and Tuvok were certain the intentions were hostile.

After a few hours the aliens gave up and moved away but Tom knew they would keep coming back, testing the shuttles defenses as they looked for a weak spot.

Tuvok watched the receding figures. "The shield should hold for some considerable time. By then Voyager will have located us."

"Only one problem," Tom stated. "A graviton field is like a black hole. It draws things in but doesn't let anything back out. Even if Voyager does find us she might not be able to do anything to save us." He hated pointed out all the negatives but they had to be realistic if they were to survive. "If we start rationing then we can survive a few weeks at most but we can't stay here indefinitely." He paused in thought, recalling an old movie from the Twentieth Century. "You need to watch that movie ' _Flight of the Phoenix_ '."

"I fail to understand how watching a movie can aid in our situation."

"The point is, this plane crashed in the middle of a desert. They had limited food and water on-board and nothing but sand for hundreds of miles in all directions. So one guy came up with this plan to use what they had left of the damaged plane to build another plane that could fly them out of there."

"I see the relevance of the movie title, referring to a legendary bird that dies in fire and rises up from its own ashes. However, I do not believe we will be able to construct another space worthy craft with the damaged parts from this one."

"That's the thing. We don't have to. This," he pointed out of the cockpit window, "is the equivalent of that desert but the other side of the planet might be more hospitable. Food, water, resources to make a better shelter."

"Again this implies Voyager will not come for us, but I accept the logic of your proposal and it will give us purpose while we wait for Voyager to make contact."

The next few days passed slowly. Tuvok had repaired the distress beacon but they had no way of knowing if the signal had escaped the gravitational pull of the graviton sinkhole. They had no communication from Voyager either but Janeway considered Tuvok a valued colleague and friend. She had originally taken Voyager on a mission to find Tuvok after he disappeared along with all on-board a Maquis vessel while undercover, so Tom could not see her giving up too easily on her friend now. Despite his most recent disappointment to her, Tom believed she would not give up on him either. It wasn't in her nature. Still, the lack of communication bothered him and if it wasn't for the rift visible in the sky over their heads, he would have been concerned the rift had closed, trapping them inside a pocket universe consisting of these few worlds. He mentioned his fears to Tuvok.

"That would not occur. If the rift closed then the gravitational forces would crush everything inside."

"Then we'd better hope Voyager finds a way to get us out before that happens."

****

Days turned to weeks and Tom was glad he was stranded on this world with Tuvok rather than anyone else. He had always admired him, perhaps even hero-worshiped him a little, especially after Tuvok refused to accept Tom was guilty of murdering Tolen Ren over an infatuation with Tolen's beautiful wife, Lidell. Tuvok had believed in his innocence when everyone else was convinced of his guilt. The terrible images of murdering Tolen Ren, witnessed over and over as a punishment, had almost killed him both physically and emotionally, but Tuvok had proved this memory, which had been used to convict him, had been implanted in his mind by the real killer.

It had almost made him feel guilty for the number of times he had played practical jokes on Tuvok, including reprogramming the holographic Vulcan monastery to change the mediative chants to Ferengi ones about profit.

Almost, but not quite.

Originally, Tom had suggested the Phoenix project just to keep them occupied but the longer Voyager remained out of contact the more important it became to them if they were to survive on this barren world. Tom had already built a small drone and sent it out in a spiral search pattern, looking for a more hospitable location but so far it had found nothing other than more desert for a thousand miles in every direction. This didn't deter him though for this world was easily as large as Earth so there could be whole other continents out there... or even just one place, one island or valley.

Attacks had come often over the first two weeks - occurring both day and night - but irregularly since then. Tuvok brought the shuttle's sensors back online during the first week to act as an early warning system for any hostiles approaching. Having forewarning of an attack benefited them once Tom figured out a way to extend the shield so they could protect any work and equipment left outside from the marauders. The extended shield used more power, and they needed to raise it between dusk and dawn to protect themselves from a spine-backed creature which hunted only in darkness. To save power they lowered it during the day and, so far, they had only needed to raise it on two occasions during the daylight hours, each time to thwart an attack.

On the third week Tuvok managed to catch a large spider-like creature that hid under the rocks, probably the natural prey of the spine-backed creatures, and it turned out to be safe for both of them to eat. It was definitely an acquired taste but it meant they could extend their fast depleting rations. In the meantime Tom had managed to repair the Doctor's holo-emitter but its power source was broken, no longer recharging, so they could only activate it sparingly much to the Doctor's distress. Fortunately the Doctor understood the necessity of keeping him powered down except in an emergency.

However, that meant it was just him and Tuvok for the most part, and Tom was surprised when he discovered they shared so many common interests, including a love of holodeck programming and novels.

"Sandrine's was based on a small bar I found while stationed in Marseille." He went on to describe some of the colorful characters he had met and immortalized in his holodeck program, reproduced faithfully from memory.

"I have made use of the program on occasion but, as you are aware, my preference is for the Vulcan monastery program I created specifically for meditation. Though I do prefer it without the Ferengi chants and with the Masters properly attired in robes rather than sleepwear." He paused. "Except for Master S'Tal, whose affinity with animals made his Le Matya cub pajamas strangely fitting."

Tuvok raised a knowing eyebrow and Tom had to laugh, finally admitting to making both the changes.

"I was aware of your culpability for the code was quite elegant."

Tom smiled at the unexpected praise and the unusual glint of approval in Tuvok's expression, but thoughts of the holodeck made him think of Voyager, distracting him from questioning Tuvok's strangely more human responses.

Yet another day went by with no communication from the ship, and Tom was convinced they would have given up the search by now. He said so as they shared that evening's meal.

"Voyager is probably another hundred light years closer to the Alpha Quadrant by now," he said morosely over a meager dinner of spider soup and half a nutritious but otherwise bland carbohydrate pack of noodles, but Tuvok seemed even more silent and impassive this evening.

"You're quieter than usual," Tom remarked.

He thought he saw a hint of irritation cross Tuvok's face, though it could have been a trick of the light. It was fleeting but on top of his increasing concern for Tuvok's health, it had Tom concerned enough to pull out the medical scanner, only for it to be slapped out of his hand when he brought it close to Tuvok.

"Hey!"

Surprised by the sudden flare of anger, Tom edged back from Tuvok only to see hurt reach his eyes.

"I... apologize, Ensign."

Tom visibly relaxed though inwardly he remained alert to the emotions he could now sense simmering just beneath the Vulcan's surface. He had never seen Tuvok react in this way before but a distant memory was nagging at the back of his mind. At the Academy he had taken two semesters of biochemistry relating to non-Terran anatomy as an additional subject, mostly for very personal rather than professional reasons. He'd been so young and immature at the time, and he'd figured it might come in handy for picking up sex partners of any race for a fun night between the sheets. Instead all it had landed him in was trouble at the academy, and a deputy medical position on-board Voyager. However, it meant he knew enough about Vulcan physiology to have a very bad feeling about this.

The Vulcan compulsion to mate - the Pon Farr - occurred approximately every seven Earth years. Voyager had been trapped in the Delta Quadrant for over five years at this point and Tuvok had been in the Maquis, far from Vulcan, for several months before that. Tom had a sinking feeling that Tuvok's time had come and he was entering Pon Farr.

Broaching the subject was not going to be easy as Vulcans were very private about this aspect of their physiology, perhaps even ashamed of it, but Tom also knew Tuvok appreciated honesty and directness.

He braced himself as he asked, "Are you entering the Pon Farr?"

His words still managed to surprise a reaction out of Tuvok but then some of the previously unnoticed tension seemed to leave Tuvok as he recognized the necessity for speaking the truth.

"Yes."

"Is there anything-."

"No. When the time comes I will remove myself from your presence and use the meditation disciplines of the Kolinahr to-."

"Wait a minute. I thought it takes years to master that discipline."

"Nevertheless I will attempt-."

"And if you fail you will die."

Tuvok glared across at Tom following this second interruption. "And if I stay here then you will die."

By now they were both on their feet, meal forgotten.

"I'm not some fragile creature-."

Tom cried out in shock as Tuvok rushed him, pressing him back across the cockpit console, but he recognized Tuvok's tactics, wanting to scare him into agreeing with Tuvok's plan to disappear into the desert and die alone. He tried to push back but Tuvok was an immovable object, close enough that his warm breath fanned across Tom's heated face.

"Get off me," Tom gritted out slowly but calmly.

After a moment Tuvok relented but he couldn't seem to hide a certain smugness in his expression that claimed victory. Tom waited until he was released before sitting back down, trying to appear logical and non-threatening.

"I understand why you have.... reservations, but marriages between Vulcans and other races, including Terrans, are more common than you'd think these days. If they can survive the Pon Farr then there is no reason why I can't stand in for your wife on this occasion." He saw a flicker of eye movement. "Unless there's something I don't know."

Tuvok remained silent for a moment and Tom was convinced he was going to be ignored.

"My wife, T'Pel. She is dead. I was due to return to Vulcan before my time to take the new mate selected for me."

Tom nodded slowly. "I'm sorry for your loss." He gained a slight nod of acceptance from Tuvok. "So... How does this change things?"

"You will not be a surrogate. If I force myself on you then you will become bonded to me as my lifemate."

Over the years Tom had been accused often by others of having commitment issues and he felt a moment of panic now at the thought of being bonded indefinitely to Tuvok, perhaps for the remainder of his life. Yet the thought also stirred some deep need inside him, of belonging to something... or someone.

"How long do you have?"

"Why do you ask?"

"I need time to think."

"I will be leaving in the morning."

Tom nodded, tempted to push away the remainder of his food as he had lost his appetite, but his mother used to tell him to never make any decisions on an empty stomach. He slowly finished the meal, feeling it settle like a lead weight in his stomach, and watched as Tuvok rose gracefully only to sink down into a meditative posture as far away from Tom as possible in the confines of the damaged shuttle. 

Thoughts crowded through him. What if they found a more hospitable place and it had people? Bonding with Tuvok would deny both of them the chance to find more suitable partners. Except Tom had yet to meet anyone more compatible than Tuvok, as these past weeks had proved. Gender or race had never been an issue with him. His stormy up and down relationship with B'Elanna was the closest he had come to having a good relationship, and yet he doubted they could have spent weeks stranded together on this world without wanting to kill each other. Whereas he and Tuvok just seemed to work, complementing each other in their skills and finding common ground despite the differences in their ages and cultures.

After an hour with thoughts chasing around inside his head chaotically, Tom walked over and sank down in an identical posture in front of Tuvok, within arms' reach. He saw surprise, the emotions no longer easily concealed as the effects of the Pon Farr affected Tuvok. He thought he would feel scared or more hesitant but he felt a sense of calm steal over him as he looked into Tuvok's familiar dark eyes.

Tom reached out and touched Tuvok's hand, seeing the reaction in dilating pupils and hearing a short, indrawn breath. He wasn't a telepath but Tuvok's guard seemed to be brittle at best, and his touch crumbled that shell, letting his emotions flood through Tom. Fear and concern for him were uppermost, along with respect, affection, and regret.

"You were disappointed in me when I helped the Moneans protect their oceans."

"Only that you chose to go against Captain Janeway's orders to not involve Voyager in their internal politics. I understood your reasons."

"Really?" he replied sarcastically as he doubted anyone knew how his father had railroaded him into joining Starfleet Academy when he would have rather stayed on Earth to watch over its oceans.

"Yes. I know of your love of the ocean from early childhood. Mr. Kim felt a great need to explain your actions to me."

Tom winced as he had spoken to only a few people about his childhood dreams, and in confidence, yet he found he truly didn't mind Tuvok knowing this about him.

"Tell me about T'Pel... and your children."

Tuvok was silent for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts, but once he started speaking Tom listened as he spoke of an arranged marriage after failing to fully control his emotions after studying the Kolinahr for six years. He learned of Tuvok's pride in the children borne out of that marriage. It was easy to forget humans had short lives compared to Vulcans, and that three of Tuvok's four children were older than Tom. The fourth, a daughter named Asil, was around Tom's age and she was an accomplished scientist at the Vulcan Academy, following in her mother's footsteps.

"Did you plan to father more children?"

Tuvok raised both eyebrows. "The choice was never mine, and four is sufficient."

Tom had never entertained the idea of having kids though there was always the chance he might change his mind one day. Becoming bonded to a Vulcan, even a male Vulcan like Tuvok, would not preclude this from happening if he ever desired a family. Despite his commitment issues, Tom could not think of any reasons why he could not make this bond with Tuvok, and for that reason alone he knew it had to be the right thing to do.

"So... How do we do this?"

"Do this?"

"I'm not going to let you die, Tuvok. If you need reasons then I have a list of them."

"Tom..."

Tom smiled as Tuvok spoke his first name rather than his rank, raising his other hand to cup Tuvok's cheek in the palm of his hand. When Tuvok reciprocated, Tom flinched slightly, a little afraid of what would happen next but Tuvok reached out slowly and gently placed his palm against Tom's cheek, fingers slowly re-aligning until they found the meld points. Tom closed his eyes as he felt Tuvok's thoughts sliding into his mind, wrapping carefully around him as if his mind was fragile and could break. He felt Tuvok slowly opening up to him, letting him share a lifetime of memories, of emotions running uncontrolled in his youth when he loved but was rejected by a Tellerian girl, of his successes and failures. In turn Tom allowed Tuvok to see his memories of living in the shadow of his father's rank and reputation, of seeing his dreams cast aside, of being molded into a Starfleet officer but never truly belonging, leading to his fall from grace and imprisonment in New Zealand.

The meld deepened, strands of memories and thoughts linking, bonding them together; more intimate than any kiss, more naked than any physical act.

All Tom's senses and thoughts attuned to Tuvok, and Tuvok's needs became his needs, igniting a fire in his blood that overtook them both. Clothing was stripped from their bodies, flesh pressing against bare flesh, overpowering Tom's senses completely as they moved together. Vulcan reticence had long disappeared, lost in the maelstrom of Tom's human needs and emotions as the Pon Farr - the blood fever - sent them both spiraling into ecstasy.

When he came back to his senses, Tom could only lie in silence, wrapped in hotter than human arms as his mind relived the amazing sensations still reverberating through him in muscle memory. He could feel the ache from being taken but equally he could recall pressing into Tuvok in turn. The silver thread of the bond rippled with awe and pleasure as Tuvok rose up onto one forearm and looked down at him.

"I feel..." Tuvok began to say but the bond translated those words into sensation, and in that moment Tom understood the inner battle that had followed Tuvok throughout his life. He knew why Tuvok had not fitted in, why his emotions had run so close to the surface and why he had failed to master the Kolinahr. He could feel the way his human emotions meshed with those churning beneath the surface in Tuvok, filling a need that neither could acknowledge alone but melded now as if he was the key to Tuvok's lock.

It was both awe-inspiring and humbling, filling them both with a sense of belonging, and the only thought that marred this moment was his fear that they would only have this complete connection of body and mind once in every seven years.

"It does not have to be that way. T'Pel was my bondmate but it was a bond made of convenience, to assuage the blood fever. Our lives and our thoughts were never in harmony. This bond between us is..."

He paused, deep in thought, and eventually the word he gave was in an Ancient language from the time before Surak and the move towards controlling the fierce passions of Tuvok's race with logic. It did not seem to have a direct translation into Federation Standard but Tom could feel its meaning through the bond. It was more intimate than T'hy'la, and the closest he could find was the Betazoid word for beloved - Imzadi.

Tom thought everything would be different from that day onwards, and perhaps it was. The camaraderie was still there along with the work ethos that kept them moving forward on the Phoenix Project, but the shared intimacy remained. Perhaps they had always looked and touched - a brush of a hand, a casual glance - but Tom felt it on a whole new level now, and it felt amazing. And each night they curled up together rather than several feet apart, taking pleasure from each other.

****

"We can begin assembling the Phoenix tomorrow," Tuvok stated, having finally accepted Tom's name for the new craft.

Tom nodded but he knew it would still take several more days before the craft was flight-worthy, but sending out the drone had finally paid off with the glorious view of trees, grasslands, and a large lake of clear blue water many thousands of miles to the east of their current position. Yet it had spotted no indigenous population. The creation of their bond had made it even easier to communicate ideas and feelings, speeding up the work especially as Tom had noticed how the days were getting longer and hotter. It seemed they had crashed onto the planet in the equivalent of late fall or early winter and although the rising heat did not affect Tuvok so greatly, coming from a cooler climate on a world orbiting further from its sun than Vulcan, Tom was beginning to suffer from the rising temperature.

Two days later Tom added the final touch to the craft they had built between them. Slowly he painted the name along the edge of the cockpit. The _Phoenix_ had risen from the ashes of the damaged shuttle and was almost ready to fly them out of the desert. Just a few more component tests to go.

Later he would blame the heat scrambling his brain but Tom didn't hear the warning from the sensors as he worked out under the hot sun replacing a faulty coupling. The sharp pain had him spinning backwards, landing awkwardly, but Tuvok was there instantly, alerted to his pain through their bond. He raised the shield as more rocks rained down on them from the attacking aliens, and Tom's blurry vision tried to focus on the pretty flares of light as each rock was deflected by the force shield. A shadow blocked his view and then Tuvok was right above him, eyes dark with fear as he ran the medical scanner over Tom's head.

He didn't realize he had lost consciousness until he awoke some time later in the slightly cooler interior of the shuttle, but any fear was quickly erased by the familiar pressure of Tuvok's touch both physically and mentally, though the mental bond did seem more subdued. He sent reassurance through the bond, feeling Tuvok relax slightly.

"Hey, Doc!" he called but his voice cracked weakly.

"It is good to see you as well, Ensign Paris. Now please remain still while I finish." After a moment he smiled down at Tom. "Thankfully you have a hard head but you do also have a mild concussion. I prescribe rest and fluids for a minimum of three days." He sat back a little. "I believe congratulations are also in order." The Doctor's smile encompassed Tuvok. "I believe the correct phrase is, live long and prosper."

"Thanks," Tom murmured back, strangely pleased to have his bond with Tuvok openly acknowledged.

The Doctor placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Rest now."

Tom looked up at Tuvok. "What happened?"

"We were attacked but, fortunately, it appears our hostile neighbors can no longer power their phasers and resorted to throwing rocks."

Tom avoided nodding his understanding, aware that he would be dead for certain if they'd shot him with a phaser, rather than concussed.

"The _Phoenix_?"

"It sustained some damage but can be repaired in time."

By silent mutual agreement they left the Doctor's program running for two days, enjoying the sound of another voice for the first time in months. On the second day, just before they were about to power down the holo-emitter, the communication console sprang into life. The noise was strange and it took them a few moments to realize it was being distorted by the graviton field. Tuvok adjusted the settings.

"This is Voyager. Repeat. This is Voyager. Are you receiving?"

****

It was hard to believe that only two days had passed for the crew of Voyager compared to the seven months he and Tuvok had survived together on the world within the graviton sinkhole. The rift was closed now though it would be the equivalent of several more weeks before those still trapped inside were crushed by the collapsing gravitational field. It could have been them too if not for the tireless work by their friends on Voyager. Yet his thoughts turned to the _Phoenix_ and how they never did get the chance to fly her out of the desert. He wondered if those left behind would destroy all of his and Tuvok's hard work, or if they would make use of the _Phoenix_ to give themselves those few last weeks in a kinder environment.

He would never know.

Once he was out of the infirmary, it was strange trying to slot back into his former life on-board when so much had changed in him. Tuvok's presence in his heart and mind had grounded him - in a good way - but the temporal anomaly had made it hard for some people to accept his new place at Tuvok's side. As a Vulcan, Vorik was one of the few who did understand, willingly moving so Tom and Tuvok could be in adjoining quarters, though Tom had made it clear from the start that he intended to spend every night wrapped around Tuvok - with the obvious exception of when either was on duty. As a dutiful partner, Tuvok had agreed, though Tom knew deep down Tuvok would have wanted it no different.

"Are you happy?" Harry asked on the second week back.

Tom looked across the mess as Tuvok entered, feeling a warmth spreading through him, body, mind and soul, as they made eye contact. The bond stretched between them, bright and shining, making him feel like he truly belonged for the first time in his life.

"Yeah. I can honestly say I am."

END  
 


End file.
